Ken Hubbs

Kenneth Douglass Hubbs (December 23, 1941 – February 13, 1964) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a second baseman for the Chicago Cubs from 1961 to 1963. He was killed in a plane crash near Provo, Utah prior to the 1964 season.

In his short big-league career, Hubbs was considered to be an excellent fielder; assessments of his hitting were more mixed. In 1962, he became the first rookie to win a Gold Glove Award, and set several fielding records. Those achievements helped him win the National League Rookie of the Year Award that season. At the time of his death, Hubbs was considered to be one of the best defensive second basemen in the game.

Early life

Hubbs was born in Riverside, California and resided in nearby Colton.

He played in the 1954 Little League World Series. Colton represented California. They beat Virginia in the first round and Illinois in the second. In the final game of the Series, Schenectady beat California 5-3. Two future big league players played on the Schenectady team: Jim Barbieri, with the Los Angeles Dodgers, and Bill Connors, with the Chicago Cubs, both in 1966. Highlights of Hubbs playing defense at shortstop were captured on film. The video includes a play where Hubbs ran from the shortstop position to back up the second baseman and caught a bloop fly into short right field.